Bittersweet
by EE's Skysong
Summary: Gellert offers Albus a taste of his home. But chocolate is never just chocolate. Grindledore.


(An: I know Word of God says Gellert never loved Albus back, but SHH OKAY.)

Gellert glanced around the room, eyebrows raised. Unlike Gellert's room, which he only cleaned when it got so dirty he could no longer clear a path to the door, Albus's looked like the sort of room where dirty socks went directly to the hamper with no stopover on the floor and where dust had long ago given up attempting to conquer any flat surface. The only clutter was a pile of brightly colored candy boxes arranged near a few sheaves of parchment.

Albus, standing awkwardly by the door, shrugged. "Graduation presents from my friends. Unfortunately, I don't have much of a sweet tooth. Please, help yourself. Frankly, I find it all rather depressing." Avoiding Gellert's eyes, he walked over by his bed but kept standing, his shoulders stiff.

Gellert rubbed the back of his neck. Then he shrugged. If Albus wanted to explain, he would explain. He walked over to the boxes and glanced over them. Oh. There were cards scattered among the candy. "Best wishes on your future career, Albus!" "Here's hoping you don't make us_ all_ look bad!" "Highest hopes, Albus. Don't forget to write." Gellert noted with distaste that most of the cards, though unsigned, had feminine handwriting.

Leaning forward, Gellert picked a box at random. He'd never seen British candy before. "Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans?" he asked, glancing at Albus with his lips twitching.

Albus made a face, though he nodded. "You can have those." He drew out his wand and sketched a chair in the air. A ridiculously comfortable-looking armchair appeared, and he stretched out sideways, his long legs dangling over the side. "Aberforth got me a box for Christmas last year. Nothing but bogey-flavored. I've rather lost my taste for jellybeans since them." He caught Gellert's eye and grinned, then let his head fall back and looked up at the ceiling, his hair trailing over his shoulders.

Gellert returned his attention to the candy and replaced the box of beans. There was a large bar of chocolate near the bottom—surely that was safe. Unwrapping it, Gellert turned around and leaned against the desk. "So where is that irritating little brother of yours?"

Albus closed his eyes. Gellert couldn't tell if he disliked that Gellert had insulted his little brother or if he just found it difficult to discuss his family. It had taken ages to get Albus to even mention he had a little sister, much less that his family was a difficult subject. Gellert still didn't know the whole story, either. "He's downstairs with Ariana. They're having a checkers tournament." A ghost of a smile crossed his face.

Gellert nodded and broke off a bit of the chocolate, glancing at the pile of candy and its cards. The thought of all those female admirers irritated him like an unsolved math problem. Undoubtedly, none of those girls had seen past Albus's handsome face—surely none of them really knew him. The idea niggled. Ignoring his chocolate, he looked at Albus. "So which one is from your girlfriend?" Albus looked at him, confused. Gellert nodded at the cards. "Or did you just leave a trail of broken hearts from here to Hogwarts?"

Albus dropped his gaze, blushing. "No, I did not—at least, not that I'm aware of. I didn't have any… romantic attachments, I'm afraid. Too much homework."

Gellert paused with the chocolate halfway to his lips and let his hand drop, a smile playing around his lips. "That was a lie. I've told you already that you're horrible at it, Albus. Did you think I wouldn't notice?"

Albus blushed darker, though he met Gellert's eyes and shrugged. "I was hoping you'd take pity on me, though now I see that was a hope as foolish as Harold Belcher's." He sighed. "I'm not lying. But yes, there were… offers, as you can see. I simply chose to refuse all of them."

Gellert tugged on one of his curls with his free hand, cocking his head to the side. There was a question he wanted to ask, but he didn't think it was prudent just yet. Albus still spooked whenever things got too personal, and they would talk of nothing but nonsense for hours.

Well. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. He could try a softer version for now. "Ever been kissed?"

Albus's entire face had turned red by this point. He covered his face with his arm, as though to block out whatever came to mind at the question. "…Once. When I was fifteen. I was cornered under the mistletoe by a friend of mine." He glanced at Gellert, like he thought that might be good enough. Gellert just grinned and made a "go on, then" gesture. Albus sighed. "I… dissuaded her, saying I wished to focus on my schoolwork, and she kindly informed every other female in the castle."

Gellert snorted, crossing his legs. "Well, it saved you the trouble, didn't it?"

Albus shrugged, looking at the ceiling. He seemed depressed again.

Damn. Maybe Gellert oughtn't to have pushed this—but he was just so curious… His hands clenched at his sides. Should he apologize or something?

But then Albus sighed again. "As you can see, most of them never really gave up, much to my chagrin. One of the few nice things about being here, I suppose—I don't have to worry about ever facing them."

Gellert fidgeted. He wanted to ask why Albus was so completely uninterested, but… well, that was a question for another time. You had to tread lightly, and since he wasn't very good at that, it was probably better they didn't mention it at all. "Fair enough."

Albus smoothed his trousers, glancing at Gellert with a hesitant curiousity in his eyes. Gellert grinned, though he pretended it was at the chocolate, not his friend. "…What about you?" There was more than normal interest in his voice, but he looked away when Gellert tried to study his face. Albus asked his next question of the ceiling, in a voice that was trying too hard to be casual. "Got a lovely Sabrina or Ilsa waiting for you back in Berlin?"

Well, turnabout was fair play. Gellert chuckled. "No, no." He turned the bar of chocolate over in his hands. "I have had a few… encounters, but I've yet to meet anyone who stays interesting after we kiss." He glanced at Albus, wondering if he would understand… perhaps. But that, like the question of why Albus found it so easy to ignore all his female fans, was a question for later.

Albus cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

Gellert shrugged, looking out the window. For once, he did not feel like smiling; thinking of his various attempts at love was always frustrating. "I don't know…" He sighed. "They change when they realize they love me, and they expect me to change, too. I have never understood it."

Albus raised his eyebrows. He was blushing again, though Gellert wasn't sure why. "So you've never…?"

Gellert shrugged. "I very much cared for some of them, but apparently not as much as they for me." Albus nodded, still blushing, and Gellert smirked. Just because he didn't want to push Albus too much didn't mean he couldn't be wicked. "And yes, that means I am a virgin."

Albus choked and almost fell off his chair. Gellert threw back his head and laughed. Albus glared at him. "Merlin's pants! Did I ask?"

Gellert shrugged, still snickering. "You might as well have." Albus glared at him, smoothing his hair back into place. "You're hilarious when you're angry, by the way." In response, Albus huffed and crossed his arms over his chest, though his mouth kept moving toward a smile.

Gellert looked down and realized the piece of chocolate in his hands had melted all over his fingers. "_Scheisse_," he muttered. Albus glanced at him, and he held up his messy hand with a rueful smile. Then he shrugged and popped what was left of it into his mouth.

Though Gellert did not discriminate when it came to sweets—or food in general—the chocolate was a serious disappointment. "No wonder you English are so depressing." He licked the chocolate off his fingers with a melancholy expression. Albus quirked a brow. "If this is what you call chocolate, I'm surprised you all didn't throw yourself off bridges long ago. This is sad. And sadness and chocolate don't go together." He paused, tapping his lips with his freshly candy-free finger. "Unless you're a girl, I guess. I wouldn't really know."

Albus tilted his head, smiling. "Now, really. That chocolate came straight from Honeydukes—finest wizarding sweetshop in the UK." Gellert shook his head, closing his eyes in horror. "What, you mean you've had better?"

Gellert sucked the last bit of chocolate off his fingers. "I have, actually." He folded up the wrapper and replaced the chocolate bar in the stack. Albus raised his eyebrows. "Really. You keep forgetting that I am a German, and we Germans do whatever we do exceptionally well. Including chocolate."

He paused, cocking his head to the side. A slow smile crossed his face as a truly delicious—in every sense of the word—idea occurred to him. "You should come 'round to my place tomorrow. You have yet to see my room, after all, and I happen to have brought some simply exquisite chocolate with me."

Gellert saw his room through a stranger's eyes when Albus walked in. Though he kept standing by the door, Gellert found himself wondering how his room could have gotten so dirty when he'd only been living here for three weeks and why he hadn't started cleaning the moment Albus had agreed to visit.

Oh, well. Albus wasn't the sort to judge—a weakness Gellert had already begun to exploit, though he tried not to notice it.

Gellert caught his eye, and they grinned at each other. "So unremarkable," Albus clucked, moving to Gellert's freshly dusted bookshelf. He plucked a book at random and flicked through the pages, his lips curling in a smile. "You need a sign: 'entering the room of a genius.' With that in mind, one would have much more respect for your dirty socks."

Gellert ducked his head, grinning. "You flatter me, Albus." He pointed his wand at the pillows on the bed, sending them to the floor since he didn't have an extra chair. Albus sat on one, tucking his legs beneath himself. His eyes were still on the book, but from the way they kept flicking to Gellert's face, Gellert knew Albus wasn't absorbing a word. And that only made Gellert grin more. He loved making Albus nervous.

He turned to his desk and found the few pieces of chocolate he had left. Nudging the pillow with his foot, Gellert sat down across from Albus, so close their knees touched. Albus set aside the book and looked expectantly at Gellert. Gellert's fingers felt slow and stupid as he unwrapped the chocolate, and he was very aware of Albus's eyes lingering on his. His grin felt nervous, so much that he just wanted to reach up and wipe it away. It was not bad, necessarily, but it was strange. He had never been like this around anyone else.

Albus reached for the chcoolate, but Gellert shook his head. "This is good chocolate. You have to eat it properly." He moved closer to Albus. Albus held his eyes for a single, bright moment, and then he looked back at the chocolate. "Just _wait_."

It was edging toward twilight outside, and Gellert didn't feel like lighting a candle, so he whispered a spell. A small ball of light winked into existence and hovered over their heads. "Look at it, first of all." Gellert held the chocolate up to the light. "See that shine? Gorgeous."

Albus's lips twitched. "It's just chocolate, Gellert."

Gellert shook his head. "Spoken like a true Englishman. No appreciation for anything you can't boil." Albus laughed in surprise. Gellert was so aware of every little motion, every flash of feeling. It had never been like this with anyone else he wanted—he had just kissed them and gotten it over with. With Albus… he wanted to draw everything out, wanted to study everything. Like Albus was some fascinating experiment Gellert couldn't leave alone.

Gellert leaned even closer. "Now listen." He broke the piece of chocolate with a sharp snap. "That is very important. It means you are eating real chocolate, not the sad thing your friends gave you." He lifted the chocolate to Albus's lips. "Open."

Albus looked as though he wanted to protest, but Gellert raised his eyebrows. Albus blushed; his lips parted, and Gellert placed the piece in his mouth, resisting the urge to brush his fingers against Albus's skin. "Don't swallow. Just let it sit there for a moment. Savor it."

Albus closed his eyes and smiled. "It _is_ good." He swallowed and opened his eyes. Cocking his head, he looked at Gellert's fingers. "You haven't eaten yours."

Gellert smiled—he couldn't help it. "I know." He held it up. Obediently, Albus parted his lips again, and Gellert fed him the chocolate. Though he blushed again, Albus held his eyes this time. Gellert flicked his wand to extinguish the light. His voice had dropped to a low whisper. "Now close your eyes."

He didn't wait to see if Albus consented—he couldn't. He put his hands on top of Albus's and kissed him. A bit of chocolate lingered on Albus's lips: bitter and complex with a sweetness so faint it was almost painful. Albus stiffened, but he did not move. His fingers trembled under Gellert's, so Gellert gripped them and ran his thumbs over Albus's palms. Albus stayed very still.

Gellert moved away, though he didn't let go of Albus's hands. Things couldn't be _too_ bad, since Albus wasn't pulling away or cursing, but his stillness wasn't promising, either.

At last, Albus opened his eyes. They were very wide, and he was blushing, and for the first time after kissing someone Gellert did not want to look away from his face. Maybe because he hadn't gotten any real answer from Albus yet. Maybe because the taste of chocolate still lingered on his tongue.

"The problem with that," said Albus at last, and his voice was faint, "the problem with that is now I can't remember how the chocolate tasted. Not a bit."

"Good thing I have more," said Gellert, and, because Albus hadn't said no, Gellert kissed him again. This time Albus did more than tremble, and by the time they finished kissing, both of them had forgotten that the conversation started with chocolate at all.


End file.
